Wednesday, April 29, 2009

As I was saying yesterday, I've been playing with dishes & meals that highlight the colors Red, White & Green for this month's Royal Foodie Joust. First, I did red meat with green chimichurri sauce & white beans then I tried brownies flavored with red chilies, green pistachios & white chocolate chips. They were both good but I wasn't sure they were Joust-worthy. That's when I came up with this idea.Creamy malted milk flavored gelato is sandwiched between red velvet cookies with chopped pistachios pressed into the edges. The cookies came out so beautifully, they have a soft cake-like texture (which stays soft even from the freezer) & a great chocolate flavor. Matt had bought some malted milk powder to make cookies last week & I thought it would make a wonderful gelato flavor. It's like a vanilla ice cream that has been slightly caramelized or is a little nutty. The saltiness of the pistachios is a perfect foil to the sweet gelato & adds a nice crunch.

Put everything a saucepan over medium-low heat. Bring to a simmer stirring occasionally until the sugar & malted milk are dissolved. You may need to whisk it to get rid of the lumps of malted milk. Let cool to room temperature. Put in an airtight container & completely chill.

Cream the butter & sugar together until light & fluffy. Beat in the eggs. Add the buttermilk, vinegar, vanilla & food coloring and mix well. Add the flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda & salt & mix until throughly combined. Scoop 2-inch rounds onto a baking sheet lined with a silicon pad or parchment paper. Bake for 10 minutes, cookies will be soft. Allow to cool on the sheet for a few minutes & then move to a rack to cool completely. Chill the cookies in the freezer for at least 30 minutes before assembling sandwiches.

Makes 5 - 6 cookies

Assembly

1 T chopped natural pistachios (the green ones)

If gelato has frozen hard allow it to soften a little. Place a large scoop of gelato on the bottom side of one cookie. Top with another cookie, bottom side towards the gelato. Press together. Uses a clean finger or knife to clean up edges if needed. Roll in chopped pistachios. Repeat for remaining cookies. Place gelato sandwiches into the freezer until ready to serve.

I absolutely cannot wait to make these in my own kitchen!! Being from the South, we love us some red velvet cake-- and gelato is the absolute best. This is a simple brilliant entry and looks SO GOOD!!! Best of luck on the joust. I love it! You're right, there are just so many directions to go with this theme it was hard to pick. Would love to see the posts for your runners up too! :) K